Brain Health Archives - Brainfit Resorts Cognitive Wellness Programs Thu, 22 Oct 2020 01:14:16 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 https://brainfitresorts.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/favicon.png Brain Health Archives - Brainfit Resorts 32 32 How the Behaviour-Change Support Program is Providing Wellness Solutions for a Healthier Tomorrow https://brainfitresorts.com/cognitive-wellness-solutions-for-a-healthier-tomorrow/ https://brainfitresorts.com/cognitive-wellness-solutions-for-a-healthier-tomorrow/#comments Sun, 18 Oct 2020 22:39:42 +0000 https://brainfitresorts.com/?p=16567 A healthy lifestyle cannot be achieved by going to the gym only. 

It needs to be complemented by healthy dietary choices along with many other healthy lifestyle practices. We believe one of the great challenges for health and wellness providers is getting the desired results for their clients when certain self-defeating behaviours interfere with the health plans. These can be activities such as smoking, unhealthy diet, lack of movement, or a combination of other lifestyle factors. 

This is where the team of BrainFit Resorts can support you.

Our team has designed the Behaviour-Change Support Program to aid the implementation of your health plans with the science of behaviour change.

In our experience, some clients can prove challenging due to their seemingly uncooperative attitude, frequent cancellations, and coming up with excuses on a regular basis for not achieving their desired goals. Yet, in reality the issue is that these clients need a more targeted support approach where they are helped in developing specific skills they require to succeed in implementing the desired changes. 

The Behaviour-Change Support Program can help these clients by first identifying the behavioural patterns that are causing such problems, and introducing robust support systems that will help them make sustainable changes to their daily living. 

Promoting a healthier living is a task easier said than done, but the Behaviour-Change Support Program has a team of doctors and specialists who have a proven track record with helping your clients shift challenging and potentially unhealthy habits. 

The personalised solutions we employ are science-based and results-oriented, and our custom approach to each client creates a unique experience. 

Custom behavioural change strategies that are adapted for each client helps them achieve their prescribed goals and develop lifestyle habits that are health-enhancing and sustainable.

The Behaviour-Change Support Program is currently offering a 21 days free trial program so you and your clients can experience our expertise and capabilities, to uncover if we could be the client solution you’ve been looking for. If you want your clients to achieve improved health and make lifestyle changes such as quitting smoking, eating healthy, losing weight or just enhancing their physical activities, then the Behaviour-Change Support Program at BrainFit Resorts is the perfect program.

 

How does the program work?

  • We work with your client as a support team to apply your prescribed wellness plan.
  • We apply the latest research into habit formation and behaviour change.
  • We use a combination of strategies: Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Acceptance and Commitment therapy, clinical hypnosis and mindfulness, delivered remotely via mobile apps, so clients can be supported in their native environments.
  • We apply these strategies to achieve your short- and long-term health goals and support your customers with an individualised plan that fits their readiness stage and needs.
  • We provide your clients with weekly and daily support with face to face sessions and text messages.
  • We will send you a progress report during and at the completion of the program.

 

What are the benefits to you?

The benefits to healthcare providers include:

  • You will increase client satisfaction and the effectiveness of your health care plans.
  • You will have the benefits of a support service for your more challenging cases completely for free.
  • You will have the opportunity to add your webpage link to our Behavioural Support webpage when you refer just three clients. 

Interested? Contact our Chief Clinical Psychologist, Dr Susanna Zito, at susanna@brainfitresorts.com for more information and to request a client referral form.

 

]]> https://brainfitresorts.com/cognitive-wellness-solutions-for-a-healthier-tomorrow/feed/ 11 Our Multi-Domain Approach https://brainfitresorts.com/our-multi-domain-approach/ Mon, 13 Jul 2020 15:57:01 +0000 https://brainfitresorts.com/?p=16471 Age-related cognitive decline and dementia are strongly associated with lifestyle choices; therefore, their prevention requires a multi-domain approach (that is tailored to address individual risks). This means that any prevention strategy needs to address all the domains of our lives: food and eating habits, physical and mental activities, sleep patterns, perceived psychological stress, as well as emotional and social engagement. Therefore the pillars of our multi-domain approach will address all these aspects and include:

  1. Individual risk factors assessment
  2. Nutrition, supplements and brain-healthy diet
  3. Physical activity and exercise
  4. Stress reduction and management
  5. Sleep health
  6. Memory and information load management
  7. Cognitive stimulation and training
  8. Social engagement
  9. Innovative cognitive enhancers/stimulants

 

Read also:

The Science Behind Dementia Prevention

5 Steps To Preventing Alzheimer’s Disease

]]> What’s A Psychologist Got To Do With It? https://brainfitresorts.com/whats-a-psychologist-got-to-do-with-it/ Thu, 12 Sep 2019 04:33:59 +0000 https://brainfitresorts.com/?p=8043 I am very happy that accessing the support of Psychological services has become more and more common practice for many people.

 

However, I think there is still a misconception that Psychologists are seen only when there is a serious mental health problem, overwhelming feelings, and disruption to life.

 

It is true that many Psychologists are trained in the assessment and treatment of Mental Disorders, in treating trauma, substance use issues, in supporting individuals and families dealing with grief and loss; issues that are serious, disrupt life and cause immense pain and suffering.

 

However, the specific set of skills Psychologists have can be used effectively to support change in people who want to simply shift their life and take better care of themselves.

 

It does not necessarily mean there is trauma or chaos.

It means someone has identified a gap in their life and wants to make a change that matters.

 

This can sometimes be difficult because of many reasons: poor insight, old habits, self-limiting beliefs, past history, or a limited set of coping strategies, can all get in the way.

 

A psychologist can help you change that, identify why this change matters to motivate you further, explore what behaviors you may be engaging in that keep you stuck, what skills do you need to develop, and what behaviors need to shift or be replaced with more self-serving ones.

 

This can be applied to many areas of one’s life, like lifestyle choices, health matters, nutrition, physical activity, relationships, parenting, employment, life goals, and also retirement.

 

I usually look for what life “gap” is the person experiencing.

 

What important aspect of who they want to be is not being fulfilled, and from there, we look at what thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are getting in the way of value-driven action.

 

All of this can take time and practice for the person developing his new ways.

 

The Psychologist helps by bringing all the evidence-based knowledge into practice with tips on new habit formation, on how to effectively deal with the inevitable hurdles of change, whilst supporting the refinement of new effective behavioral skills.

 

So if you have tried to make changes but “it was too hard”, have old “unchangeable habits”, find “change too stressful”  and yet you are keen to shift your life for the better, I encourage you to consider reaching out to a Psychologist who may just be the right support for you.

 

We hope these tips provide you with some insights and assistance to living your most brain healthy life.

If you enjoyed reading this blog, and want to see more of our articles relating to psychology, check out the links to some of our other articles and videos below:

 

 

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If you would like us to feature a particular topic or interest in one of our upcoming articles or videos, leave a comment below with the details or alternatively, send us an email to info@brainfitresorts.com.

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Until next time… Live Strong. Live Well. Live BrainFit.

]]> Can Stress Be Good For Us? https://brainfitresorts.com/can-stress-be-good-for-us/ Thu, 11 Jul 2019 03:42:43 +0000 https://brainfitresorts.com/?p=5588 Most people find stress to be a very powerful internal force and dealing with it can at oftentimes be an insurmountable task.
Is it then possible for stress to actually be good for us?

We’ve discussed in many of our articles and videos what can trigger stress and ways in which we can more effectively manage it physically, but could it be possible, for us to change our perception of what our stress actually is?

 

You see, our beliefs can shape our reality.
The way we appraise an event can trigger a myriad of behavioral responses that can affect the way we act and experience our whole life.

This can also affect us at the physiological level.

 

For example, in one of our previous articles, I mentioned how our belief of aging can affect whether we age healthily or not.

Simply by holding a strong enough belief that we can age with healthy minds, bodies, and spirits, and acting accordingly, can be the difference as to whether it becomes a reality or not.

 

This also applies to how we experience stress, and, how it might similarly impact our health.

But what if then, there was a simple approach to stress that would alter our whole experience and physiological response?

Research shows that what we believe of stress has a lot to do with its impact on us.

If we believe stress to be toxic, this will trigger physiological responses that can predefine serious health issues even ten years from now.

 

However, in people who see stress as “energizing” their biology is different: they feel better, there is less inflammation, lower blood pressure, decreased stress hormones and they handle the stressful tasks more successfully.

They use the stress response to harness the energy and address what needs to be done.

 

Author and researcher Kelly McGonical describes three responses to stress:

  • The flight and fight response
  • The challenge response; and
  • The tend and befriend response.

These three responses are all triggered by stress but have different physiological effects in the body.

Let’s explore them in more detail:

 

The flight and fight response:

A person perceives stress as a situation that is overwhelming. This leads to increased inflammation, high levels of cortisol and adrenalin, and strain on the cardiovascular system.

The challenge response:

A person perceives the stress as a challenge to master. The body is energized into action with less inflammation, lower blood pressure, decreased stress hormones.

The tend and befriend response:

A more socially connected response where the person reaches out for support has more compassion for himself and others. This generates a more parasympathetic system response in the body, where blood pressure is normal, and vasopressin and oxytocin are released (these are the connecting “love” hormones). In fact, this response appears to be protective of overall health, healthy aging, and brain health.

 

 

Let’s look at this in more practical terms.

  • Thinking stress is bad, will make us try to avoid it, causing more stress and more harm (i.e. I will drink to make these feelings go away). This happens usually in flight/fight response.
  • Thinking stress is a challenge we can sustain, that the feelings are excitement and energy, will activate the challenge response which is physiologically less damaging.
  • And reaching out and helping and connecting to others in a similar struggle is protective and physiologically not damaging at all (and this is the tend and befriend response).

 

So how does this work in the real world?

Let’s look at some examples.

 

Tommy has a big swimming race and his heart is pounding.
He is stressed but reminds himself “This energy will fuel my body during this challenge”.
He uses the energy to compete and does well in the race.

Leila has a newborn baby who does not sleep at night.
She joins a support group for mothers and finds herself understood, supported and supporting other mums in a similar situation.
She feels that she is not alone, and she can handle this challenge.

 

So from this, we can see that in order to activate more beneficial physiological responses when stress occurs, it is helpful to keep our beliefs of stress in check.

Accepting stress as a normal body response, rather than trying to avoid it or believe it is toxic), might help activate a “challenge stress response”.

Looking out for beliefs like “I cannot handle these feelings of stress” and reminding oneself “this is energy my body is producing to help me handle this situation” will also help us move from flight/fight to challenge response.

 

Finally, reaching out to your own community of family and friends, and connecting to others in similar situations, will help activate the tend and befriend response.

This is a bit like that feeling of connection that arises when big tragedies strike (i.e. after a natural disaster) and communities come together for support and care.

Rather than going within and shutting down, reaching out and connecting produces powerful healing, and generates a healthier response in the minds and bodies of all.

 

Applying this simple information to how you respond to a stressful situation may be helping the brain to shift from a Flight and Fight response to a Challenge, Tend and Befriend reaction.

This is not only better for the body, but this simple mind reset may generate a cascade of new and positive actions that could impact your life and brain health for the better.

 

We hope these tips provide you with some insights and assistance to living your most brain healthy life.

If you enjoyed reading this blog, and want to see more of our articles relating to nutrition and brain healthy foods, check out the links to some of our other articles and videos below:

 

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If you would like us to feature a particular topic or interest in one of our upcoming articles or videos, leave a comment below with the details or alternatively, send us an email to info@brainfitresorts.com.

We’d love to hear what’s on your mind.

 

Lastly, if you know someone who may benefit from this article or any of our other features, please SHARE this article with them using the icons below and help us to better enrich the lives of those who need it.

Until next time… Live Strong. Live Well. Live BrainFit.

]]> Healthy Bodies Make Healthy Minds https://brainfitresorts.com/healthy-bodies-make-healthy-minds/ Tue, 02 Apr 2019 06:06:25 +0000 https://brainfitresorts.com/?p=4486 I am often asked to name a strategy that will clearly benefit the brain.

From the myriad of information that exists out there, a lot of confusion exists around diets, supplements, and lifestyle.

My answer and there is no question about it, the number one strategy is… physical activity.

Physical activity has been conclusively shown to not only prevent cognitive decline but even improve cognition.

Truly, “what is good for the heart is also good for the brain”.

 

Where’s the link between physical health and brain health?

There are actually numerous reports, which show a strong connection between cardiovascular health and brain health.

The better the shape of our cardiovascular health, the better our brains operate.

On the opposing side, cardiovascular disease has been shown to be a risk factor for Dementia, as there is an association between cardiac output, regional brain blood flow, and cognitive impairment.

 

You see, our brains have an elaborate network of blood vessels that are integral to brain function.

These networks supply oxygen and nutrients to brain cells and remove waste products and toxins.

Thus, through increased physical activity, resulting in more blood pumping throughout our bodies, our brain’s networks can push in more oxygen and nutrients and push out more waste products and toxins.

 

Physical exercise also protects against Dementia by decreasing other chronic diseases, such as obesity, diabetes, and hypertension.

All of which, are commonly associated with being leading factors in developing Dementia and Alzheimer’s in later years.

Both animal and human studies have shown, that physical exercise induces brain growth factors (BDNF, brain-derived neurotrophic factor and IGF1, insulin-like growth factor 1)

These promote the formation of new blood vessels, nerve cells (neurons) and nerve cell connections (synapses), which play a crucial role in our neuroplasticity and protection.

 

In other words, as we exercise, our brains actually GROW and develop connections.

This is especially important for people entering their Golden Years.

Studies have proven that those who exercise regularly, have increased brain grey-matter volume in regions associated with general intelligence and executive functions.

These include everything from attention to planning and problem-solving skills.

 

What am I basing this on?

Well, for starters, several studies which followed healthy adults from midlife (mean 45) to old age (mean 80), have shown that high levels of physical fitness at midlife were associated with a 6-10 times lower chance of developing dementia, compared to those who had low or very low cardio-vascular fitness level1.

A recent review of 39 interventional studies2, which randomized adults older than 50 years to an aerobic exercise group (tai chi, or resistance and/or aerobic training) or a control group (just stretching and toning), showed significant improvements in cognitive function after 6-12 months in the aerobic exercise group compared to controls.

The review concluded, that an exercise program with components of both aerobic and resistance-type training, of at least moderate intensity, and for at least 45 min per session, on as many days of the week as possible, is beneficial to cognitive function in adults aged >50 years.

Another recent review3 of interventional studies, which examined the optimal exercise dose for better cognition, concluded that a minimum of 52 total hours over 6 months (2-3 one-hour sessions per week) of any type of physical  activity (cardiovascular exercise, resistance training, and mind-body exercises, or a combination) is associated with improved cognitive performance in older adults.

 

So, how can we integrate physical activity in our everyday life?

We have used here the terms physical activity and exercise interchangeably, but let’s examine how they differ.

Physical activity is any activity that gets your body moving such as gardening, walking the dog, raking leaves, and taking the stairs instead of the elevator.

An exercise is a form of physical activity that is specifically planned, structured, and repetitive such as weight training, tai chi, or an aerobics class.

We have no reason to believe that they differ in their effects on the brain, but obviously the former is less well quantified and studied.

However, if you can engage in an active lifestyle, which combines both, you will reap tons of benefits to your body health, cognition and mood.

You just need to make it a habit.

 

If you would like to find out just what kind of physical activity, exercises and habits, you can integrate into living a more active lifestyle, take a look at some of our previous Blog posts.

Click on the links below:

 

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Until next time… Live Strong, Live Well, Live BrainFit.

 

REFERENCES – LINKS

  1. Midlife cardiovascular fitness and dementia: A 44-year longitudinal population study in women. Neurology. 2018 Apr 10;90(15):e1298-e1305. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/29540588
  2. Exercise interventions for cognitive function in adults older than 50: a systematic review with meta-analysis. Br J Sports Med. 2018 Feb;52(3):154-160. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28438770
  3. Exercise for cognitive brain health in aging: A systematic review for an evaluation of dose. Neurol Clin Pract. 2018 Jun;8(3):257-265.https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30105166

 

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